This invention generally relates to mapping a route on a computer, and more specifically, a method for depicting an online map of a route along with any traffic incidents on the route.
Communication networks are well known in the computer communications field. By definition, a network is a group of computers and associated devices that are connected by communications facilities or links. Network communications can be of a permanent nature, such as via cables, or can be of a temporary nature, such as connections made through telephone or radio links. Networks may vary in size, from a local area network (LAN) consisting of a few computers or workstations and related devices; to a wide area network (WAN) which interconnects computers and LANs that are geographically dispersed; to a remote access service (RAS) which interconnects remote computers via temporary communication links. An internetwork, in turn, is the joining of multiple computer networks, both similar and dissimilar, by means of gateways or routers that facilitate data transfer and conversion from various networks. A well-known abbreviation for the term internetwork is xe2x80x9cinternet.xe2x80x9d As currently understood, the capitalized term xe2x80x9cInternetxe2x80x9d refers to the collection of networks and routers that use the Internet Protocol (IP) along with higher level protocols such as the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) or the Uniform Datagram Packet/Internet Protocol (UDP/IP) to communicate with one another.
The Internet has recently seen explosive growth by virtue of its ability to link computers located throughout the world. As the Internet has grown, so has the World Wide Web (WWW). The WWW is a vast collection of interconnected or xe2x80x9chypertextxe2x80x9d documents written in HyperText Markup Language (HTML) that are electronically stored at xe2x80x9cWeb sitesxe2x80x9d throughout the Internet. A Web site is a server connected to the Internet that has mass storage facilities for storing hypertext documents and that runs administrative software for handling requests for those stored hypertext documents. A hypertext document normally includes a number of hyperlinks, i.e., highlighted portions of text which link the document to another hypertext document possibly stored at a Web site elsewhere on the Internet. Each hyperlink is associated with a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) that provides the exact location of the linked document on a server connected to the Internet and describes the document. Thus, whenever a hypertext document is retrieved from any Web server, the document is considered to be retrieved from the WWW.
A consumer is allowed to retrieve hypertext documents from the WWW, i.e., a consumer is allowed to xe2x80x9csurf the Web,xe2x80x9d via a Web browser. A Web browser, such as Netscape""s NAVIGATOR(copyright) or Microsoft""s INTERNET EXPLORER(copyright), is a software program implemented by a Web client, i.e., the consumer""s computer, to provide a graphical user interface (GUI) to the WWW. Upon request from the consumer via the Web browser, the Web client accesses and retrieves the desired hypertext document from the appropriate Web server using the URL for the document and a protocol known as HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP). HTTP is a higher-level protocol than TCP/IP and is designed specifically for the requirements of the WWW. It is used on top of TCP/IP to transfer hypertext documents between servers and clients.
At the advent of the WWW, the information stored on the Internet was generally static in nature and if one wanted to change the information provided on WWW sites it was necessary to manually configure the WWW site by rewriting the HTML code of the WWW site. However, at the present stage of development on the WWW, many WWW sites provide dynamic content that changes depending on a consumer""s interaction between the Web browser on the consumer""s computer and the WWW site.
There currently exist WWW sites that provide dynamic content such as online atlases and mapping services. Some of these online mapping services also provide traffic analysis and reporting of traffic incidents occurring on particular routes. However, these services determine if an incident occurs on a route by mapping the names or numbers of exits on particular highways or streets to determine where an incident is located. This does not adequately describe the locations of incidents, as a desired travel route may not have a named or numbered exit where an incident has occurred.
Accordingly, a more effective method and system for depicting an online map of a route along with any incidents on the route is needed. The method and system should provide a consumer with the capability to easily and quickly view a depiction of their desired route along with any current incidents on the route.
The present invention solves the above-described problems by providing a method and system for depicting a desired route as well as any traffic incidents occurring along that route. According to one actual embodiment of the invention, a WWW site is provided that allows a consumer to easily and quickly access an information server that will provide them with a depiction of their desired route along with any current incidents on the route. An information server is then provided to analyze the consumer""s desired route by examining the latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates of the points along the route thereby allowing for greater accuracy when determining if an incident falls on a particular route.
In one actual embodiment of the present invention, the consumer first provides the origination and destination addresses of the route. In response, a mapping server provides a proposed route for the consumer""s approval. The consumer may modify the proposed route or accept it as the final route they desire. Next, the route is analyzed to determine if any traffic incidents have occurred upon it based on retrieved incident information compared with the route. This analysis comprises preparing the route by creating regions of interest around the segments composing the route, examining if any traffic incidents fall within one or more of the regions of interest, and then determining for those incidents that do fall within a region of interest if the incident is closer than a threshold value to any segment on the route. If it is, then the incident is on the route, and the final analysis determines on which segment of the route the incident should be placed. The final route along with any incidents on the route is then depicted for the consumer via a WWW site or by some other device capable of depicting the route.
In accordance with yet other aspects of the invention, a method, a system, and a computer-readable medium containing instructions for depicting an online map of a route along with any incidents on the route are also provided.